More American-style BBQ at Brooklyn Bistro

NOSA: From Smoqshaq in greater Lekki to Rhodes in Alausa, American-stye barbecue has slowly found its way into Lagos. Even BBQ & Cravings has added slow cooked ribs to menu. This week, we checked out another entrant - Brooklyn Bistro.

Located right in the middle of Fola Osibo, Brooklyn Bistro is a cute (read: small) restaurant

FOLLY: Brooklyn Bistro is a very humble space so it’s advisable not to go in expecting a fancy restaurant or the full works (at least I didn’t) or you’d be mighty disappointed. The entire restaurant has about 3 tables and the bar so it’s very small.

NOSA: Fitting ten people in there might stretch its limits. That’s how small, I mean “cute”, it is. I know that reads like shade, but I actually like the spirit of the place. It’s certain character to it. It has that “my first business” vibe and in this economy, it’s something I rate very highly.

The menu isn’t particularly extensive, your barbecue choices are confined to chicken wings, ribs (beef or pork) and brisket. After our visit, they revamped the menu a bit however. Added a couple new wing flavors and combos, but nothing particularly significant so we aren’t dated lol.

FOLLY: We got right into it and ordered an item each from the three sections of the menu: meats, wings and sandwiches

The sandwich was the most disappointing of the lot and I’d rather not dwell on it.

NOSA: It looked like Chickwhizz

FOLLY: The pulled meat was way too tough to be called brisket and the bread, well, that was a soggy mess. The bottom slice had completely disintegrated by the heaviness of the sauce and couldn't; be picked up.

NOSA: I liked the brisket, but they went with the wrong bread type. I’d have gone with a burger bun and not regular toast. And if I went with toast, I’d lean towards something thicker like Texas toast. The coleslaw and brisket are way too moist for the bottom slice to survive.

FOLLY: The wings were good. The meat was very tender and the flesh slid of the bone without jerking and tearing. I was not adequately whelmed by the sauce. It tasted like a bottled barbecue sauce that had been upgraded with Cameroon pepper.

NOSA: Same sentiment on the wings, but we’ll get into the sauce when we talk about the ribs.

FOLLY: The soggy fries were disappointing and the Mac N Cheese, I prefer not to speak because I’m not supposed to be eating dairy. However, if I must speak on it, it was macaroni combined with cheese.

NOSA: The Mac n Cheese was more of a Penne Alfredo to be honest. Very “moist” for lack of better word.

FOLLY: Moving on to the ribs. Again, grade A on tenderness as every bone pulled out clean.

NOSA: This is exactly how all ribs in Lagos should work.

FOLLY: However, the cut wasn’t great because it was a lot more fat than meats in parts but nothing I’d really complain about for more than a sentence.

NOSA: The ribs are bit interesting. The technique on it was great, but it tasted a like it was marinated with something from a bottle. A bit too sweet at points.

FOLLY: Again the artificial taste in the sauce reared it’s head. It tasted really artificially sweet and at the same time quite acidic. So I concluded that it was either one of two things, they simply used a bottle barbecue with Cameroon pepper for the heat or they attempted to make theirs and they was just way too much ketchup and vinegar in their recipe.

POSTSCRIPT

NOSA: The food at Brooklyn Bistro was good, but not great. Like, imagine a friend’s mother that’s a really good cook. You love her food, but you’d never think of eating her dinners at a restaurant. That’s what Brooklyn Bistro feels like.

FOLLY: Honestly wasn’t one of the better barbecue experiences that I’ve had in Lagos.

NOSA: There’s definitely room for growth and I’m a bit optimistic because there’s just something about the place that I like.